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[UE: date stamp with pencil annotation:]
Eingegangen ......
Beantwortet 29. III 09
[UE stamp:]
2067


Sehr geehrter Herr Direktor! 1

Besten Dank für Ihre freundliche Gesinnung. 2 – Da ich augenblicklich, (trotzdem der Druck am 1. Octob. begonnen hat) erst bei S.150 des Kontrapunktbandes bin,– nämlich laut dem Imprimatur–, u. nebst dieser so viel Zeit in Anspruch nehmenden Arbeit auch noch, wie Sie ja wissen, Stunden (leider!) zu geben habe, um eine Zeit, wo es sonst einschießen wäre Unterredungen zu pflegen, so schlage ich vor, ob wir nicht bei Dr. Brünauer 3 – dem ich auch endlich einmal einen Abend widmen muß – in Ruhe u. Gemütlichkeit die nötigen Dinge erörtern könnten. Es ist tatsächlich nur möglich, ohne Hast u. Nervosität all diesen Sachen auf den Grund zu kommen. 4 Dienstag kommt Dr. Brn . zu mir, ich werde mich nach den Möglichkeiten erkundigen, u. ihn ersuchen, die Sache mit Ihnen telephonisch auszutragen. 5 {2} Und es sollte mich freuen, wenn ich Ihrerseits so viel Entgegenkommens finde, daß es denkbar wäre, an irgend eine Arbeit für Ihr Institut zu schreiten. Ich habe nämlich selbst einen Vorschlag, den Sie anhören müssen. 6


Mit ausgezeichneter Hochachtung
I[h]r ergb
[signed:] H Schenker

28. 3. 09

© Transcription Ian Bent, 2005, 2016

[UE: date stamp with pencil annotation:]
Received: ......
Answered: 29. III 09
[UE stamp:]
2067


Dear Director, 1

Many thanks for your kind thoughts 2 ‒ Since at the moment (despite the fact that printing began on October 1) I am only just on p.150 of my Counterpoint volume ‒ at the imprimatur stage, that is ‒ and on top of this work, which takes up so much time, I still also have, as you well know, (alas!) to give lessons, at a time when I would otherwise be able to schedule discussions, I wonder whether we could not thrash out what needs discussing at the home of Dr. Brünauer 3 ‒ to whom I must sooner or later devote an evening ‒ in peace and conviviality. Only in an atmosphere free of rush and agitation is it really possible to get to the bottom of all these matters. 4 Dr. Brünauer is coming to see me on Tuesday; I will explore the possibilities, and ask him to settle the matter with you by telephone. 5 {2} And I would be glad if I can find sufficient flexibility on your part for me to be able embark on some kind of project for your company. I have a particular proposal myself, that you must listen to. 6


With kind regards,
Your devoted
[signed:] H. Schenker

March 28, 1909

© Translation Ian Bent, 2005, 2016

[UE: date stamp with pencil annotation:]
Eingegangen ......
Beantwortet 29. III 09
[UE stamp:]
2067


Sehr geehrter Herr Direktor! 1

Besten Dank für Ihre freundliche Gesinnung. 2 – Da ich augenblicklich, (trotzdem der Druck am 1. Octob. begonnen hat) erst bei S.150 des Kontrapunktbandes bin,– nämlich laut dem Imprimatur–, u. nebst dieser so viel Zeit in Anspruch nehmenden Arbeit auch noch, wie Sie ja wissen, Stunden (leider!) zu geben habe, um eine Zeit, wo es sonst einschießen wäre Unterredungen zu pflegen, so schlage ich vor, ob wir nicht bei Dr. Brünauer 3 – dem ich auch endlich einmal einen Abend widmen muß – in Ruhe u. Gemütlichkeit die nötigen Dinge erörtern könnten. Es ist tatsächlich nur möglich, ohne Hast u. Nervosität all diesen Sachen auf den Grund zu kommen. 4 Dienstag kommt Dr. Brn . zu mir, ich werde mich nach den Möglichkeiten erkundigen, u. ihn ersuchen, die Sache mit Ihnen telephonisch auszutragen. 5 {2} Und es sollte mich freuen, wenn ich Ihrerseits so viel Entgegenkommens finde, daß es denkbar wäre, an irgend eine Arbeit für Ihr Institut zu schreiten. Ich habe nämlich selbst einen Vorschlag, den Sie anhören müssen. 6


Mit ausgezeichneter Hochachtung
I[h]r ergb
[signed:] H Schenker

28. 3. 09

© Transcription Ian Bent, 2005, 2016

[UE: date stamp with pencil annotation:]
Received: ......
Answered: 29. III 09
[UE stamp:]
2067


Dear Director, 1

Many thanks for your kind thoughts 2 ‒ Since at the moment (despite the fact that printing began on October 1) I am only just on p.150 of my Counterpoint volume ‒ at the imprimatur stage, that is ‒ and on top of this work, which takes up so much time, I still also have, as you well know, (alas!) to give lessons, at a time when I would otherwise be able to schedule discussions, I wonder whether we could not thrash out what needs discussing at the home of Dr. Brünauer 3 ‒ to whom I must sooner or later devote an evening ‒ in peace and conviviality. Only in an atmosphere free of rush and agitation is it really possible to get to the bottom of all these matters. 4 Dr. Brünauer is coming to see me on Tuesday; I will explore the possibilities, and ask him to settle the matter with you by telephone. 5 {2} And I would be glad if I can find sufficient flexibility on your part for me to be able embark on some kind of project for your company. I have a particular proposal myself, that you must listen to. 6


With kind regards,
Your devoted
[signed:] H. Schenker

March 28, 1909

© Translation Ian Bent, 2005, 2016

Footnotes

1 Writing of this letter is not recorded in Schenker's diary.

2 i.e. as expressed in OC 52/402, March 21, 1909.

3 Note that by this device, Schenker contrives to have a witness to the conversation. In later years he would usually have Jeanette present.

4 Schenker perhaps finds the intense atmosphere of Hertzka's office at UE distracting, and is unable to get his points over successfully as a result. He is clearly aware that Hertzka is able to enveigle him into agreeing to things he later regrets.

5 Presumably to extend an invitation to his home; note how Schenker avoids direct spoken contact with Hertzka; moreover, Schenker did not have a telephone until much later in life.

6 A conversation took place on April 1 (Thursday), and Hertzka records it in OC 52/920, April 1. Schenker's proposal is likely to have been an edition of Bach's Chromatic Fantasy & Fugue, which was published by UE in 1910. For more on this negotiation, see Bent, "'That Bright New Light': Schenker, Universal Edition, and the Origins of the Erläuterung Series, 1901–1910," Journal of the American Musicological Society 58/1 (Spring 2005), 69–138, esp. 81–87.

Commentary

Rights Holder
Heirs of Heinrich Schenker, in the public domain
License
This document is deemed to have been in the public domain as of January 1, 2006. All reasonable steps have been taken to locate the heirs of Heinrich Schenker. Any claim to intellectual rights should be addressed to the Schenker Correspondence Project, Faculty of Music, University of Cambridge, at schenkercorrespondence[at]mus(dot)cam(dot)ac(dot)uk.
Format
2p letter, holograph salutation, message, valediction, and signature, UE stamps with annotation
Provenance
Universal Edition Archive (document date-1976)—on permanent loan to the Wienbibliothek im Rathhaus (1976-)

Digital version created: 2016-08-26
Last updated: 2010-03-01